‛Rose Revolution’

[Sent to Cambodia Daily on 21 August 2013. Not printed.]

The NGOs – Licadho and CLEC – quoted in your stories may be correct that the two students arrested in the “Rose Revolution” case didn’t know of any connection between their roses and the stickers that called on soldiers to shoot Prime Minister Hun Sen – although how the NGOs discovered this so quickly, while the arrestees were still in custody, has not been explained.

And what about the two people charged for printing the stickers? Is it claimed that they didn’t know what the stickers said, or didn’t know that the stickers might be distributed? Licadho and CLEC argue that “the mere printing of offensive stickers” doesn’t establish criminal intent. Yeah, sure. Their officials should try printing a comparable leaflet in the US or Britain or Australia and report back to us on their experience 40 or 50 years from now, when/if they get out of prison.